Tag: paleo

blackberry lemon sorbet (AIP)

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During the summer we are addicted to sorbet. Buying it can be pricey especially if you’re getting the “good” organic stuff that is usually full of sugar. After living in Oregon for three years I finally made it out to a U-pick farm. We have tons of raspberries growing here at home but we wanted some new flavors. So we trekked out to Sauvie Island and picked til we were bleeding. No, seriously, do not wear a dress and sandals to pick berries. They had these adorable baskets for sale there too! (pro-tip: look in the clearance bin for baskets 75% off)
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It was late in the season so it was a lot of work but judging by the looks of this double batch of sorbet it was worth it. I like my sorbet less sweet than store bought so I keep decreasing the amount of honey. Feel free to use as much or as little as you want. The lemon brings a nice brightness and sourness to counter the sweet berries. I like to make my own in big double batches and freeze it in my favorite ice cream containers. It’s easy to mix it up and keep several flavors on hand. The base can also be used for popsicles and I also make ice cubes out of it to make my own italian sodas. Just add as many cubes as you like to bubbly water. So refreshing on a hot day!

Blackberry Lemon Sorbet

Makes 1 quart (can be doubled)

  • 2 cups fresh blackberries 
  • juice and zest of 1 large lemon
  • 1/2 cup raw honey
  • 2 cups water
  • pinch of salt

Rinse and run blackberries through a sieve or blend on very low speed and drain through sieve to remove the seeds. a few seeds are okay but you want them mostly gone. Set aside. (I also use my wheat grass juicer which is my preferred method but you don’t need any special tools to do this part.)

Zest, then juice 1 large lemon. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, add 2 cups water and 1/2 cup raw honey (more honey if you like it super sweet) and stir over medium low heat until honey is melted into water. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl or mason jar add the blackberry puree, lemon juice and zest, salt and honey/water mixture. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight.

Add mixture to your ice cream maker per your manufacturers directions and then freeze a minimum of 4 hours.

enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

avoiding sugars..a never ending series….

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avoiding sugars…a never ending series

The biggest tip I can give you about avoiding sugar is….JUST ASSUME IT IS IN EVERYTHING!! Below I will go into a list of foods that I’ve found refined sugars in. I have spent countless hours reading package labels on foods at the grocery store. When I first became paleo my trips to the store often took two hours. I’ve saved some of that hassle for you by sharing my findings. Another thing that can be really tricky is eating out. I will go into that in a separate article.

First off, you need to retrain your brain on what are “healthy” sugars. I remember 10 years ago when I worked at a fancy vegan restaurant in LA, agave was all the rage. Trader Joe’s started carrying it and you started seeing it at coffee shops next to the sugar. One of my biggest disappointments is picking up on of my favorite beverages, such as Turmeric Temple drinks only to find I have just consumed agave. The tricky part is, not all of their drinks have it. Some have honey, some have agave. In my magical paleo fantasy land this would never happen, but here we are. It can be exhausting to remember which things you can have and ones to avoid, especially when the same brand goes back and forth between their juice blends. Hello, are you listening Turmeric Temple? Things get even more fun when you try to send someone else to the store for you.


Me – “Can you grab me a turmeric drink?”
Husband – “Sure”
Me – “Oh but I can only have the Super Turmeric Juice, not the regular Turmeric Juice”
Husband – “They are sold out of that, how about I grab you another flavor”
Me – “Nevermind, grab me a water”

Now don’t get me wrong, I love this stuff. I drink it all the time, I would just prefer it to be all one way or even the other so I could just avoid it all together.

  1. Assume it is in everything
  2. Read labels
  3. Ask questions

Food list:
Bacon
Deli meats, even organic
Sausages (pro tip: go for spicy)
Ketchup (even organic)
Mustard
Salad Dressing (pro tip: make your own)
Condiments (Dressings, horseradish, mustards, etc.)
Protein powders
Medicines, Cough drops

In the next part of this series I will start to share a comprehensive list of foods I have found that I love and that don’t have refined sugar.

Roasted Fennel & Carrot Soup

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  • 2 medium fennel bulbs, green tops cut off
  • 1.5 lbs carrots
  • butter (grass fed preferred)
  • 2-3 cups of warmed stock (vegetable or chicken)
  • kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper

 

preheat oven to 375 degrees.

remove core from fennel and slice into 1/2 inch strips. in a bowl or on the sheet pan toss with softened butter, salt and pepper. roast in 375 degree oven  until lightly carmelized approx. 45 min. set aside.

cut carrots to 1/2 inch pieces and toss with softened butter, salt & pepper. roast in 375 degree oven  until lightly carmelized approx. 45 min. set aside.

working in batches add fennel and carrots to vitamix (or blender) and blend until smooth by adding stock to your desired consistency. i prefer a thicker puree but you can play around to see how you like it. you can also add just a little bit of stock and you’ll have a puree to serve alongside meat, fish or vegetables.

Season with salt & pepper to taste.